Jonah Engler’s wellness is not only about healthy eating. It is the state of health both in body and mind. In short, wellness results from intentional practices such as physical activity, proper nutrition, and preventing disease. Focus on 5 dimensions of wellness for children– social, spiritual, physical, emotional, intellectual, and environmental. Other aspects, such as occupational and financial, are also taken into consideration.
Top 5 Dimensions of Wellness for Children According to Jonah Engler
These are the 5 dimensions of wellness for kids as per Jonah Engler,
- Physical Wellness- Nutrition and obesity are generally what comes to mind when one hears the word wellness. Right physical activity and proper nutrition are good ways to affect one’s physical well-being positively. It is usually harder to perform than people think. With multiple contents and varying opinions on right nutrition as well as correct levels of activity, making these choices for children is indeed tough and more challenging with regards to teaching kids regarding how such decisions impact their wellness.
The older one gets, automatically the harder it becomes in learning new habits and forming new behaviors. It is during early childhood when one requires developing the healthy habits essential for living healthy as adults. Via encouraging constant learning early, one can help their kids in forming a commitment to lifelong learning. Introducing new modes of learning can help. Today there is much more to life apart from Google and TV. It is good to take kids to an interactive event or a kid’s museum. The library is also the right place or meeting others in the community such as firefighters or police.
Encouraging Curiosity
Such activities will help in encouraging curiosity as well as the desire of figuring things out. Daily outings too, can be an opportunity to teach kids about wellness. Restrict screen time. Computer and TV time must be timed and monitored. Obesity and screen time are correlated, yet even more, screens cause one on limiting themselves intellectually. Kids always model what parents do. So, if parents spend maximum time watching TV or sitting near the PC, kids are bound to learn these behaviors.
- Emotional Wellness- It is the stress that takes a huge emotional toll on kids. Ensure to remove kids from any form of stressful environments. Often things may not be stressful for the kid, but if it is stressful for the parents, kids are likely to pick this up. It is incredibly crucial for kids in learning healthy stress responses. They are generally learned either from the kid’s maternal figure or caregiver. Learning healthy reactions towards stress early will help a great deal to lessen anxiety and fear in adulthood. As per a study that was published by Harvard, excessive stress can also threaten the functioning of different organ systems resulting in diabetes, obesity, and hypertension.
- Social Wellness- To encourage children to take part in some expressive activities such as storytelling, painting, drawing, singing, and dancing can help in developing cognitive and social skills, improving the social well-being of a kid. With people’s lives getting busier, this is harder than ever. It is good to try to have food together as a family. It will help in building those bonds with family members as well as help in promoting intellectual and emotional wellness. Kids always learn from adults. To teach kids about wellness is equivalent to teaching, as this is about doing. Kids mimic the behavior which they see and what parents teach them. For teaching healthy to kids, parents require to maintain those same healthy habits effectively for their kid’s lifelong well-being.
- Spiritual Wellness- The most crucial question is what is life? To understand one’s sense of purpose is the key to spiritual wellness. It means different things to different people. A vital thing to consider is in acknowledging and respecting that every person possesses a varied “meaning of life”. Some people discover meaning in prayer and higher power, while others find spiritual well-being by helping others. Not only this, but some people find a useful purpose in healing.
For kids, although it may sound a little deep, to help a kid to see and understand their sense of purpose despite it being small can help break their barriers of confusion. It can be something little such as exploring their love for animals or wanting to visit a Sunday school. It can also clear their doubts if they fail to match those of other kids. Introducing kids to healthy environments, new ideas, and activities assist in opening their minds towards stronger possibilities. Parents need to be patient with the kid’s queries and answer them openly.
- Environment Wellness- This will offer structure and support to a child’s emotional stability. An organized and clean environment will help a great deal in keeping the kid’s frustration level low, thereby setting that tone for their organizational skills. Teach kids about caring for their environment by making them clean and organize their room and possessions regularly will help them start practicing self-care.
To start practicing healthy habits, especially for overall wellness, is never too early. Create a wellness plan can lead to a child’s better mental, emotional, and physical health. A wellness plan which concentrates on various factors will help the kid maintain clarity and mental concentration. It will calm his or her hyperactive behavior and feel emotionally stable.
Intervening these wellness aspects early in a child’s life will have the maximum perspective to considerably improve or stop some wellbeing and health troubles that happen during adult life. The bottom line is to ensure that every caretaking environment during the early phases is consistently stimulating, nourishing, and organize the developmental and health needs of kids.